Wicked Witch of the North
by xXHeart of GoldXx
Summary: Instead of working alongside the Wizard and Morrible, Glinda is thrown into Southstairs for being affiliated with Elphaba during the time she defied gravity. What will happen when Glinda is exposed to the horrors of prison?
1. Chapter 1

Glinda fell to her knees in defeat after Elphaba flew out of the attic window of the Emerald City Palace. She cried and put her hands on her face. She began to sob and her whole frame shook. She wished Elphaba hadn't done this-but she knew her best friend had her reasons and was going to fight for what she desperately believed in. Mourning over the green girl's departure was short lived when she was violently pulled up to her feet, her right arm at a slightly unnatural angle. She had no will to fight against a Gale Force guard, but she couldn't help but wonder why they were treating her like this. "You're under arrest," the guard said. Glinda gasped in astonishment; why was she being arrested? What exactly had she done?

"Why?" she managed to say despite her shock. His grip was tight on her forearm before he forced both of her hands behind her back and was handcuffed. She was lucky her wrists were small; if they were any larger, they'd be cut by the tightness of them. Instead, they were just uncomfortably tight, most likely on the tightest setting.

The guards refused to answer her and forced her out of the attic, down all of the staircases, and eventually out of the palace. Glinda assumed they were going to bring her in the jail in the city for questioning. The blonde could deal with that, she assumed, as long as she told the truth and kept herself together. Thinking of Elphaba, she attempted to stop the tears falling down her cheeks and kept her head held high.

She was led to an obscure area. Guards let them pass the gate and it opened slowly. She was taken down more stairs. Another set of guards led them deeper into the area. It was somewhat dark, but she could still see. Glinda looked at one of the guards with confusion and fright. He made eye contact with her for just a moment and his rigidness melted away for a split clock tick. But as quick as it happened, he went back to his demeanor and looked straight ahead without any form of emotion.

The guards eventually stopped her in front of a large iron gate. It was a bit eerie, and she wondered where she was. Her ears picked up on a quiet, but dreadful noise coming from within the darkness behind those gates. She could hear moaning and cries of agony. Her eyes went wide. What was that place? "Glinda Upland, due to your affiliation with the Wicked Witch of the West, you are under arrest and being sent to Southstairs," Madame Morrible said. Had she been there the entire time? It didn't matter; Glinda couldn't go to Southstairs!

"Please, there must be some mistake!" Glinda exclaimed hysterically. She had heard of Southstairs. Nobody really ever spoke of it except for the fact that it was a horrible place. She didn't particularly know any of the details, but just by the noises she heard, it was terrifying. "I did nothing! Please, I'll do whatever you want!"

"There is nothing you can do, dearie. You belong down there with the other traitors of Oz. Hopefully, that Wicked Witch will be joining you down there soon," Morrible replied.

"No! I'll work for the Wizard! I'll learn magic. I already know some. Please!" Glinda cried. "Please let me go! I'll just go home, get married, and never bother a soul again. I'll be a housewife and I won't even have children. I'll…I'll live with my parents for the rest of my life under strict supervision. Anything but this!" Glinda was hysterical now. She looked into Morrible's eyes and tried to get some form of hidden emotion in her. Nothing.

Glinda was forced past the gates. A different guard escorted her down more steps. She looked behind her and saw Morrible smirking at her. The sounds of suffering were louder as she got closer. What would they do to her? Would she be hurt? Tortured? "No!" she yelled and ran back towards the gates that had already locked her in. She ran forward and rammed her body desperately against the gates. She cried, and the guard took her arm and forced her to walk down the steps. A large, black metal door was opened.

When the door first opened, Glinda smelled blood. She could almost taste the iron. She was terrified when the door shut again. The moans, screams, and pleads were getting louder. Her handcuffs were taken off, and she was led deeper into the crevices of what was called Southstairs. She knew she was underground. There were no windows to be seen. Before she could even panic, before she could even think, Glinda was shoved behind bars. The guard closed them as quickly as possible, locking it. She watched him walk back to the door.

"Wait! No! You can't leave me here!" she cried as she grasped the bars. "Please!"

"Get away from the bars," a soldier ordered, his gun pointed towards her. The blonde cried as she backed away. "Good. Keep walking, newbie," he said to her. The guard forced Glinda far back where she couldn't even see the bars behind her anymore. She was pushed to the floor with the end of the rifle. She cried out in pain. Before she knew it, the guard had disappeared somewhere in the darkness.

Glinda noticed that hay was on the floor of the dirt floors. To be honest with herself, she didn't care that her yellow dress was filthy or her hair was a mess. Glinda realized that she was stuck down there. It finally sank in. No pleading, no begging, nothing would get her out. She curled up into a ball on the floor and sobbed. "Looks like we have a fresh one," a man said.

Glinda looked up and saw a group of five dirty men with scars and scabs staring down at her. It was very hard to make them out. But they were hovering over her, and she was terrified. "What's a rich girl like her down here for?" another said.

"I bet her parents sold her to pay some debt. Those fucking guards just love screwing virgins," a third smiled freakishly. Glinda made herself into as small of a ball as possible. She was shivering with fear. She knew her eyes were red and puffy, and her nose was running unattractively.

"Let's get to her before those assholes," the first one suggested. Glinda began to slowly crawl away, terrified of what was to come.

"Hey, get back here!" the third one said, and one of them dragged her by her ankles. She clawed at the dirt and hay with her nails, but to no avail. She was humiliated. Other prisoners watched and she didn't want to know how many had…had…she couldn't think about it.

Finally, when it was over and Glinda had been beaten, bruised, and taken, the blonde slowly crawled over to a corner where there was hay. She snuggled up close to the hay as silent tears fell down her cheeks. She was too terrified to do anything. "Come find me Elphie," she whispered. "I…I want to die."

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Please leave a review and tell me what you think. It's an idea I've had for a while now, so I decided finally to write it! It'll have multiple chapters, but I'm not sure how many there will be right now. Thanks for reading :)


	2. Chapter 2

Just a quick AN: One of the reviews mentioned that the rating should go up. However, the worst of it was in Chapter 1 with the implications of Glinda's body being used. Nothing sexual will be described in this story. Just thought I'd clear that up!

And thanks for reading and the reviews!

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Glinda realized she didn't have her shoes anymore. She wasn't sure when it had happened, but it wasn't like she had been using them anyway. She found that it was faster to run without them. Despite running as fast as she could, though, things happened to her all the time. She wasn't sure what day it was or how long she had been in Southstairs. It was always dark; there were small lights lit in some places but she refused to reveal herself out there in the light. That, she knew, would just be screaming for her body to be used yet again.

Glinda snuggled up against the hay pile. "Oh, Elphie, where in Oz are you?" she whimpered.

The petite girl felt a presence beside her. She cringed and didn't dare look at him-she would believe it was a him because she hadn't actually seen any women down there. Whoever it was didn't do anything. She could feel him staring at her. She flinched.

"Miss Glinda?" The voice was familiar. She dared to look out of the corner of her eye, and she saw a Goat, only he was on all fours. She cocked her head to the side in confusion. He had spoken, hadn't he? "Miss Glinda, I will not hurt you. It is me, Dr. Dillamond, your old history professor," he said calmly.

"Dr. Dillamond? They…they put you in here?" Glinda questioned him bravely. Hopefully he hadn't turned into a monster like everyone else down there.

"I could ask the same about you," he said to her. The blonde hesitantly reached out to him, wanting and needing the comfort of a familiar face, even if he was just her old history professor. He and Elphaba had been close, so that was good enough for her. Actually, any familiar friendly face was welcomed. He walked closer to her, and her hand had touched his fur. Before she knew it, she had wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug. Glinda began to explain everything that happened from her name change from making the "Ga" silent, when Elphaba defied the Wizard, and when she had been arrested.

"They are trying to make me a goat," Dr. Dillamond said. "So far, I am about a quarter of the way there, as you can see. I cannot seem to find the will to walk properly."

"How come? Did they hurt you?" Glinda asked. They were both sitting amongst the hay. Glinda shivered when he nodded, and she just knew he must have been tortured. If the light was better, she'd see the parts of him that lacked fur and some of it had dried blood on it.

"But do not worry about me, Miss Glinda. Please don't."

"I'm so scared," she said. "I-I can't even sleep. They're just so horrible down here."

"Miss Glinda, I will protect you while I am down here. I will do my best so that nobody hurts you. Sleep as much as you want. I will be here when you wake up," he assured her. Glinda nodded and let her exhaustion overcome her.

During her days in Southstairs with Dr. Dillamond, she found that it was much more bearable. He'd ram into her tormentors roughly with his horns. It was funny that people down there feared him, and she wondered how anyone could be afraid of him. She was very grateful for his presence, but both of them deserved to be up there, not underground.

Glinda was able to get some food into her system once a day like everyone else. He made sure nobody stole the food she had collected to eat. She was safe, she wasn't starving to death, and she had someone. Glinda never thought those things would be the only ones she wanted. However, it was short lived (or so she thought, she wasn't entirely sure how long it had been) when Dr. Dillamond was forced out of Southstairs. She remembered his cries when he told them to keep him down there with Glinda. Of course, that would never happen. They didn't want prisoners to be happy. She wondered where he had gone and ended up. Was he free? Or was he in some torture room?

Glinda waited for a long time. It had been long enough where she didn't smell the horribleness of Southstairs. She was used to the terrible noises and ignored them easily. She got used to the torture and endured it. But eventually, it became too much despite the numbness her body felt, and she ran. Glinda abandoned her spot she had occupied for such a long time. "Get back here!" a man yelled at her. Why did they want her body that badly? Didn't they have other priorities? Perhaps they had given up and realized they were never getting out.

Lost in her thoughts, Glinda tripped and fell on the ground. She forced herself not to scream when she felt a strong grip pull her up. She had no idea what was going on, and she was forced behind him. "Give me the girl," her chaser demanded. Her heart was pounding, and the other man gripped her wrist tightly. She tried to tug away, but to no avail.

"If you were smart, you'd let her be," he said. She was surprised when the man who had pursued her just left. But did this mean this man was worse? "Sorry about that. I didn't want you runnin' off so he could catch you. You all right?" Glinda stopped struggling. What was the point?

"As all right as I can be considering the circumstances," she admitted. She looked around. "I've never been this far back before," she said. "I don't even know where I am anymore."

"Have you been alone this whole time?" he questioned her. Sensing he wasn't going to harm her, she let herself become less tense.

"For the most part. I had someone, but he was taken away a while ago."

"Sorry to hear that," he said. "You're welcome to join my group. No one, especially a lady, should be down here alone. It's too risky."

"Don't I know it," Glinda said and found herself walking beside him.

"What's your name?" he asked, grabbing her hand so she wouldn't get lost in the darkness.

"Glinda. Not sure if my last name matters anymore," she replied.

"Tate," he introduced himself. "It's true, last names don't mean a thing down here. No one cares about social status."

"Everyone's the same."

"Right," Tate nodded.

"I don't even know why I trust you," Glinda said. His hand was large, she noted. It was rough and his skin was thin. He must have been an old man. She wondered how long someone could live down here for, and it scared her. Would she be an old woman prisoner? She wanted to know why he still had the will to live after so many years. Her other hand was numb and this yellow dress (now it was probably dulled and dirty) did absolutely nothing to keep her warm.

"It's good. You haven't lost that ability yet," Tate replied. They continued far back into the darkness, and Glinda was beginning to think she shouldn't have trusted him.

_Please find me, Elphie. Somehow. Oh, who am I kidding? You aren't coming back. You never will._


	3. Chapter 3

Here's the next chapter! Enjoy! And please review. I like the feedback!

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It had been so long since she had seen sunlight. She could feel her skin begging for it, but she couldn't satisfy it. She knew she wasn't doing too well, but nobody was. A lot of time had passed; she only knew this because her hair managed to grow down to her lower back. She braided it just like Elphaba did, and she realized that her green friend was right about the braid being a convenient way to keep it out of her face. She had ripped the bottom of her dress off to tie the braid in place.

Glinda hadn't known it at first, but as time went on, she realized that she had initially been right about the depths of Southstairs. Turned out, she had been accepted by Tate into the most dangerous people down there. Tate himself had been locked up because he murdered fifty men. Glinda wouldn't ask why he did it; that would be too risky. But he made sure she was safe, and she hadn't been hurt at all since she stayed by his side.

Next was Tate's Gorilla friend, Kellen, who had also murdered. She didn't ask how many people he had killed. It wasn't worth the risk, either. However, Kellen was ten years older than her, she found out. It was nice to have someone who was relatively her age. Most young people-especially women- were killed within the first few days. Only the strong survived. Kellen would let the petite woman snuggle close up to him at night for warmth. This also assured that she wouldn't be kidnapped and hurt while they slept.

The third member of the group was a Tiger named Tadeo. Glinda wasn't sure what he was down there for, but she'd never ask. After all, it wasn't her business. She always commented on his beautiful fur coat though, and he'd always tell her how fabulous and beautiful she was.

The three men in the group weren't afraid to kill if someone hurt them. Glinda was surprised she was also able to kill without a second thought. Her first tormentor had found her one day while she was getting the water for the group. When he approached her, she easily stabbed him repeatedly with a fifteen inch nail that Tadeo had given her for safety. In total, Glinda had killed five men. After the fifth, most people heard about the fearless blonde who had learned from the Gorilla, Tiger, and most wanted serial killer in all of Oz.

"Glinda, read to us," Tadeo demanded, but nicely, and handed the blonde the only book that was probably in Southstairs. She smiled, accepting the book. It was eight hundred pages long. It was about a girl who mastered magical illusions. The illustrations in the book were absolutely terrifying because the girl always casted awful images. But the story itself was very good and she had probably read the entire book at least twenty times.

"Of course," Glinda smiled as she put the book in her lap when she sat down. She read and read until she finished fifty pages. She closed the book and memorized the page number for the next time. It was amazing how much a single book could mean so much to her and even the three men who couldn't read. She placed the book in its hiding spot before Tadeo asking her to go for a walk. Tate mentioned that walking would keep their muscles in use so that they wouldn't completely waste away. So, the blonde always went on walks with the men. It was unusual, however, that Tadeo wanted to go for a walk before bed.

"Don't keep her out too late, you hear?" Tate warned. He had turned into a father figure for her which she embraced. She missed her own father and mother dearly, but what could she do? Did they even know she was rotting away in Southstairs? She decided not to dwell on it; those thoughts always brought tears to her eyes.

"Got it, boss. Just a quick stroll," Tadeo promised before taking her hand in his paw and leading her off. Glinda never protested. She did whatever it was she was asked to do in fear of something terrible happening if she didn't. Sure, the men were generally nice to her, but there was this feeling in her gut that warned her not to mess with them in any way.

"Is something wrong?" she asked the Tiger when they were far enough away. They continued to hold hands. For Glinda, it was safer that way.

"I feel like you need to know about me, Kellen, and Tate."

"What is it?" her heart began to beat in her chest. She had to hide her shallow, quick breathing to conceal her nervousness and uncertainty.

"The three of us were part of the Resistance. We aren't bad people, Glinda. I want you to know that," he explained. "You see," the Tiger began talking again when the blonde said nothing. "Tate was one of the earlier members. He murdered, yes, but it was to save the Animals who were being forced out of their homes. They were Gale Force members he killed. Same with Kellen, but he was arrested after Tate."

"I understand. You had to do what you had to do," Glinda replied.

"Oh, I never murdered a soul. Tate, he'd go into Gale Force members' homes and kill them in their sleep so other Animals couldn't get pulled out of their homes. Kellen did it because he had no choice or he'd be dead himself."

"Why are you down here?" Glinda questioned.

"I was one of the people who worked in the office. I filed paperwork and things of that sort. They just put me down here because they could," Tadeo explained honestly.

"Why didn't you tell me all of this before?" she asked.

"Not really sure, to be honest," the Tiger said. The blonde smiled up at him, even though it was too dark down there for anyone to see. They weren't anywhere near a light source. "Is there someone you really miss?" Tadeo asked the blonde. "Like the one person you wish that you could see again, even if it was just for five minutes?"

"You're probably thinking I'd choose my parents, or maybe my boyfriend to be all cliché. But I'd rather see Elphie again." Tadeo and the others knew about Elphaba and how the Wizard had locked Glinda up for being associated with her. Word had gotten out about the Wicked Witch of the West, even in Southstairs, and Glinda wished it wasn't true. She didn't know much about what Elphaba was doing, but she did know that she was being called the Wicked Witch of the West. "I just…want to run up into her arms. And I want her to tell me everything will be okay." Tears began to well up in Glinda's eyes. "Even if it won't be." Her voice was shaking as she spoke and a few tears fell down her cheeks. "I just need her to be there…I miss her so much."

"I understand," Tadeo said and squeezed her hand briefly. "I want my boyfriend, myself. I'll be all cliché, here," he chuckled sadly. Glinda could tell he was crying by the sniffle. "Joining the Resistance was the biggest mistake of my life. If I hadn't joined…I'd just be living in a forest somewhere, probably. Sure, I would have lost my house, but anything is better than this."

"My biggest regret is not going with Elphie when she asked me to join her when she defied the Wizard," Glinda said as she let herself lean against the warm fur. Tadeo put an arm around her and they helped each other walk.

"I'm surprised you aren't talking about your boyfriend like this," Tadeo commented.

"A man is a man," Glinda said. "But you can never replace a girl's best friend."


	4. Chapter 4

Upon returning to their site in Southstairs, Glinda and Tadeo found Gale Force guards finishing up the brutal murder of Kellen and Tate. She made sure not to make a sudden move as it was best to pretend not to be associated with them. She but the inside of her cheek to suppress a scream of terror and tried to breathe regularly to repress any sobs. "Never get caught reading a book, or this will happen to you," the guard growled. Any kind of book or newspaper, anything that had words, was banned from Southstairs. "These two couldn't help themselves and started reading. Spread the word." With that said, the guards left Glinda and Tadeo.

As Tadeo went over to their bodies, Glinda stood in shock; Tate had assured her he didn't know how to read. Kellen and even that grieving Tiger had said they never learned how. Then, she remembered how Tadeo admitted they had been members of the Resistance and how he had his office job. In order to file paperwork, didn't one have to read? No tears escaped Glinda's eyes this time; she found herself unable to cry. "You lied to me," she said just loud enough for Tadeo to hear. Apparently, the jig was up because through his tears, the Tiger laughed.

"I guess I told you too much," he said and turned towards her. "We couldn't read ourselves because _this_," he emphasized with his paw, "happens."

"You wanted me to get caught with the book if something like this did happene. You didn't want to help me. You wanted me dead," the blonde didn't move from her spot as the Tiger approached her. She felt completely devoid of emotion beside the feeling of regret- she regretting wasting her time with them, reading to them as if they were children.

"We didn't want you dead, Glinda. We needed some sort of sacrifice if we wanted some sort of entertainment," Tadeo shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal.

"I'm leaving," she stated bluntly.

"Where you gonna go, huh? The Emerald City, perhaps?" he laughed.

"Somewhere away from you," Glinda replied monotonously.

"Not going to lie here, you're starting to scare me just a little. Just moments ago you were all upset and making profound statements."

"I'm leaving," Glinda said again. The blonde simply turned her back to him. The Tiger continued to call out to her, apologizing profusely as she continued to walk away. He began to follow her, but the look she gave him was almost terrifying in a way. As Tadeo listened to her retreating footsteps, he couldn't help but keep repeating to himself, "What have I done?" He knew the answer, though; he had betrayed her just like all of those other creeps. Maybe he shouldn't have gone along with anything Tate said. But then again, he hadn't wanted to get killed himself.

Since she was by herself again, of course the tormenting started all over. This time, however, she didn't care. She had changed so quickly it honestly scared her, but she figured in order to survive on her own, she'd have to toughen up, and fast. She was done with forming any sort of alliances, they'd just betray her or get her killed in the end. She went along with the tormentors, letting them get what they wanted. As time went on, it was well known that the blonde girl didn't struggle; they only liked women who struggled, apparently. She was told by the last person she was with that she wasn't fun anymore.

On one particular day (if she still knew what a day was), Glinda was violently jerked from her sleep. She was blindfolded and her ankles and wrists had been tied up. She was stuffed into a burlap sack, and the top was tied. Her heart began to race in her chest, wondering what was happening. She was being dragged across the floor and eventually, she felt herself hitting bumps consistently. Glinda didn't struggle as that would probably cause more bruises and she had no will to fight.

Eventually, she came to a stop. "Take her out slowly." She heard a muffled voice. "She's not accustomed to light." Confused, Glinda was pulled out from the sack and the ropes were cut. The blindfold was slowly peeled from her eyes. When she went to open them, it was too bright; she had to shield her eyes with her arm. She felt pressure on her arm and it was pushed from her eyes. She kept her blue orbs tightly shut. "Open your eyes, dearie. You have to get used to the light."

"Madame Morrible?" Glinda questioned when she recognized the voice. She let her eyes adjust and felt the old woman near her. It took her a long time, but she eventually got her pupils to adjust and her eyes no longer hurt.

"There we go. Now, you're free."

"Free?" Glinda questioned.

"You're out of Southstairs. Someone paid your bail."

"What?" Glinda was stunned. She felt the clean tiled floor beneath her, feeling the unfamiliar surroundings that were once familiar. She used her arms to push herself up from the floor and stand. Her joints hurt; why hadn't she noticed that before? "Who paid it?"

"That is none of your concern. But let's just say one would have to be extremely wealthy to be able to get someone out of Southstairs. Do not let this newfound freedom get to you, Miss Glinda. You are still scum and I will find a way to get you back down there if you make yourself known."

"W-what do you mean?" Glinda questioned.

"If you marry into a wealthy family, if you rise above being street scum, I will put you in Southstairs again. Now, leave."

Glinda was shoved out of the Emerald City Palace by Madame Morrible herself. If she wasn't so weak, it wouldn't have been that easy. She reached into her dress pocket she had made back in Southstairs and felt the fifteen inch nail she used to defend herself. For some reason, just touching it made her feel safer and more secure.

The sun was too bright. She pressed her palms into her eyes as she was forced to stumble down the road. She felt a Gale Force soldier leading her away. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't see the palace and the guard had left. She noticed she was in the richer side of the city. She felt out of place in the rags she was forced to wear. She saw stands of food being sold and felt her hunger surface. One of the stands was her father's favorite from his stories of his travels to the Emerald City. Glinda decided she'd maybe ask for something to eat. How could someone possibly deny a scared, innocent blonde girl? Well, she wasn't that innocent anymore, but he didn't have to know that.

Glinda stumbled towards the stand. When she spoke, she was ignored. When she tried to demand her attention, she was chased away. Glinda tripped and fell onto her hands and knees. Glinda was being completely ignored.

However, when Glinda looked up, her heart soared when she saw a familiar man and woman leaving an opera. She couldn't stand anymore, so she crawled towards them-her parents. They were stopped outside the carriage, her father helping her mother in. She reached his ankles and tugged on his pant leg. He kicked her, and she fell back. "Popsicle, it's me! Galinda!" the blonde cried, using her old name her parents would recognize.

"Galinda?" her father looked down at her and she could tell he recognized her despite the state she was in. She reached her arms up towards him as if she was a child, but she was denied.

"It's me, your daughter," she said hopefully.

"I no longer have a daughter."

"But I'm right here," Glinda said, her tears falling down her face.

"How would it look if I had a daughter that came from Southstairs?" he whispered. "It's better off I say you were killed in a carriage accident. At least, that's what your mother and I opted to tell everyone. How would it look if they found we were lying? No, we could not risk that. Look, don't go blubbering now. Here's some money," he said, reaching into his pocket. He dumped a small sack of money into her hands. "And please, never speak of this. You'll be fine, my little girl. You'll be okay."

"Popsicle, no! Please don't leave me! Take me home!" her voice was hoarse and she just couldn't stop crying.

"It's been five years, Galinda. It's been too long." And with that, he stepped into the carriage and was off. She was too weak to chase after the carriage. She was too tired to force herself up and follow. Her parents, just like that, had abandoned her in order to maintain their social status. It started to rain, but she didn't care. She let the rain drench her as she cried on the sidewalk. "Elphie, I need you, but you're not here. Why can't you be here with me? Why can't you find me? I have no one; I need you."


	5. Chapter 5

Luckily, I had a snow day so here's chapter 5!

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After a few minutes, Glinda felt something nudge her. She kept her head buried in her knees, her arms wrapped around herself tightly. The rain was still pouring down, and despite everything, it felt nice to feel water flowing down her body. It was refreshing. She continued to cry over the fact that her parents neglected to help her. What had she done to deserve this?

The nudging persisted until she looked up and came face to face with a goat looking at her sympathetically. Only, this wasn't just a goat. She immediately recognized Dr. Dillamond. She realized quickly that he couldn't speak and he was still on all fours. She gave him a sad smile before wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him close. She didn't even care that she buried her head underneath his neck. She felt his chin rest on her head, and she wondered if he could understand her. "My parents…" she managed to get out. "They…they…" She felt him nod against her head, and from that moment, she knew he could still understand her.

Dr. Dillamond nudged himself away from her. She watched as he lowered himself to the ground, using his head to indicate he wanted her to get onto his back. "You saw the whole thing, didn't you?" she asked, referring to her parents. The Goat nodded slowly and sadly. She got onto his back and let him carry her. He carried her through the city until they reached one of the cheaper ends. He indicated for her to climb off for a moment. With his nose, he nudged her pocket that had the money in it. She took it out and grasped it.

Dr. Dillamond nodded in approval and let her climb onto his back. He carried her to a small inn run by a Chimp. Glinda stood at the counter and shakily asked for a room. "Sorry," the Chimp said. "Only Animals can stay at this motel. Go find one for humans."

"Please, the human ones probably won't let Dr. Dillamond stay with me. Can you please just make one exception? I-I have nowhere to go," she cried.

"I do not think so," he said. "Sorry, but rules are rules."

"Please, I've been in Southstairs for the past five years because my best friend defied the Wizard. And today my Popsicle just disowned me because I had been away for too long…if I could change one thing about my past, I would have gone with Elphaba," she said as she rambled more so to herself than the motel manager.

"You know Elphaba?" the Chimp asked her.

"We were best friends and roommates at Shiz," she explained.

"Well then, you are more than welcome to stay here," the Chimp smiled. "A friend of Elphaba's is a friend of mine."

"Do you know where she is?" Glinda asked.

"Sadly, nobody really knows. She travels around quite a bit. It's hard to pinpoint her location."

"Does she come here often?"

"She came here once three years ago. But if she does come back, I will happily let you know," the Chimp said. "Stay here free of charge for as long as you need," he said, realizing her actual condition. He became concerned for her, and offered to help them to their room. She had ridden on Dr. Dillamond's back again and the Chimp helped her sit on the bed. It wasn't much, but it was the most comfortable thing the blonde sat on since Southstairs. The Chimp spoke to Dr. Dillamond before leaving. Glinda laid back against the bed and the Goat used his teeth to put the blankets over her.

He was about to leave the room before Glinda cried out. "Don't go, please don't leave me. I…I don't think I can do this on my own." Tears fell down from her blue eyes. Dr. Dillamond approached her and looked into her eyes. "Are you going to leave me?" she asked him. He shook his head no. "You'll come back?" she asked, and he nodded his head reassuringly. "Please come back soon."

When he left, Glinda whispered, "Please come back, Dr. Dillamond. Please stay with me and never leave me. I can't bear to be abandoned by you, too." Exhausted, Glinda fell against the pillows and closed her eyes. She hugged a second pillow close to her and cried herself to sleep. "Elphie…" she murmured before sleep overtook her.

Glinda woke up after a few hours. She panicked, but then noticed Dr. Dillamond lying on the ground. She wished he would stand normally and speak to her. Maybe she'd get him to talk someday, but it didn't seem as if it would be an easy task. He came over to her bed with pieces of paper in his mouth. She took them from him and cocked her head to the side as she observed the very messy but readable handwriting.

_Miss Galinda,_

_I know I cannot speak, nor can I walk properly; I am merely a goat capable of complex thoughts. I write this to assure you I will not be leaving you alone to fend for yourself. I am terribly sorry for all of this happening to you. I wish I could change everything. I watched as your parents abandoned you, and I wish I could have spoken my mind during that moment. I understand things are horrible right now. However, I will be with you every step of the way; you've been abandoned one too many times, Miss Galinda, and I wish things were very different for you. I am going to do my best to become a functional Goat again and go to those Animal rehabilitation centers a few blocks away. Therefore, if I am not around between 2-4pm, that is where I will be. I left earlier today to pick a few things up for you. I apologize, but I had to use some of the money your father gave you. I am going to make sure you are okay. I will make sure you will have a place to stay, food to eat, and clean clothes. However, wherever you go and whatever you do, I will not abandon you; I will always be by your side. My purpose in life used to be history and using that in order to help Animals in Oz. However, my new purpose is to make sure you are taken care of._

_I promise to never abandon you. I promise to be there for you when you're hurting, crying, laughing, and smiling. I hope one day you'll smile and laugh again just as you did when you disrupted my class all those years ago. I hope you learn to trust again. I hope you learn to love again. It took me a while after Southstairs, but I assure you, it is possible._

_Dr. Dillamond_

Glinda had tears of joy falling down her cheeks after she read his letter. She wondered how long it must have taken him to write it due to the fact he probably had to use his mouth to hold the pen. She smiled at him as she cried and climbed out of the bed. She hugged him tightly and cried into his chest. He put one of his arms around her, and she was thankful that she could rely on someone she once barely knew, other than the fact he was Elphaba's favorite professor and her history professor. "Thank you so much, Dr. Dillamond. I don't know what I'd…" she said, losing the ability to speak as she sobbed.

Eventually, the two broke apart. "So," Glinda said as she dried her tears. "What did you get?" she questioned as she made her way over to the bags of things. She took out some shampoo and soap; Glinda couldn't even remember the last time she took a bath. The blonde smiled when she saw he bought her a dress. It was just a simple frock, but it seemed like a ball gown to her. She'd buy herself some more clothes later. Along with it were a nightgown, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. She also got a hairbrush and hair ties.

Dr. Dillamond brought over some oatmeal he made for her. She never really liked the stuff in the past, but she happily ate the portion given to her. She smiled happily when she tasted strawberries and blueberries mixed in. She was upset with herself that her body wouldn't let her finish it. Sighing with disappointment, she then eyed the bathroom. "I haven't taken a bath in forever," she said. "I probably smell," she said, scrunching her nose.

Glinda entered the bathroom and started to draw herself a warm bath. She was thankful this place had warm water. However, when it came time to take off her clothes, she suddenly didn't feel safe. She felt pathetic for being unable to bathe on her own. But she felt as if she had no dignity left, so she didn't hesitate to ask the Goat to come in the bathroom with her. Dr. Dillamond sat down with his back towards her and stared at the door. He never turned around to glance at her. The blonde couldn't believe how her luck had turned around.

As she washed herself, she said, "In your note, you wrote Galinda. Did I ever tell you I changed my name to simply Glinda? Honestly, I did it to try and impress Fiyero at first because, well, I think I was losing him. And he seemed to pay so much attention to Elphie, and honest to Lurline she secretly loved that attention. And I had to keep Fiyero with me. It's not because I loved him. I did a pretty good job pretending I did…but I had other reasons to keep him to myself. If I broke up with him, he wouldn't even wait a day to ask Elphie to be his girlfriend.

"She would have said yes. But I didn't want them to be together; it would have broken my heart because…I'm sorry, I don't even know why I'm telling you this," Glinda apologized, but continued to talk anyway. She felt as if she needed to get this all out. "Of course I want Elphie to be happy, but I wanted her to realize…I wanted her to be happy with me, not him. I know it isn't right and I wish I wasn't this way. I've known I've been like this since I was fifteen, but the Uplands had an image and my job was to keep the family line going.

"In rich Gillikinese families, that's what the child's job is; we have no other purpose other than the fact we have to keep the bloodline going. But guess what? I'm not one of them anymore so it doesn't matter, right?" Glinda let fresh tears fall as she remembered her parents, and she immediately regretted her rant. What if what she had just admitted something that would chase the Goat away and leave her all alone again? "Anyway, I said I changed my name in honor of you because you always called me Glinda. After my whole wanting to impress Fiyero ended, after that moment, I was happy I did it."

After washing her hair multiple times and scrubbing her body until she was satisfied, Glinda got out of the bathtub and wrapped a towel around herself and used one for her long blonde hair. She fell down onto the floor as she began to cry. Dr. Dillamond stayed by her side, giving her a shoulder to cry on, until she was finished. _Where are you, Elphie? Will you ever come back to me? Will I ever find you?_


	6. Chapter 6

After about six months, Glinda had fallen into a daily routine. She would wake up in the morning and get ready for the day before getting breakfast with Dr. Dillamond and the Chimp, whose name she found out was Jabari. After breakfast, Glinda and Dr. Dillamond would walk around the safe parts of the Emerald City for Animals; they'd shop, go to museums, and eventually get lunch somewhere. Despite her parents being out of her life, her father would send her money once a month. She accepted it, but hated herself for doing so. It was hard for women to find a job anywhere. Her father never wrote a letter to go along with it, nor did he respond to hers when she wrote. But the little connection she had with her father helped her pretend that he still cared just a little bit. It hurt less.

After lunch, she and Dr. Dillamond (who could walk upright but still couldn't speak), would go to an Animal rehabilitation center. The blonde would go to the public library and read. She found out the book she had read multiple times in Southstairs had more books in the series about various different sorceresses. Obviously the first one she read was about an illusionist, the second a levitator, and the third used water. As she read the books, she didn't realize that her mind was memorizing each spell.

She'd always check out a few books for Dr. Dillamond because Animals weren't allowed in the public library. She'd meet up with Jabari and her old professor for dinner. At night, she'd bathe as Dr. Dillamond read a book. Despite being able to be on her own, she still had trouble sleeping at night if she was alone. The Goat would sleep in the same bed as her, and she would cuddle up to him and cry herself to sleep some nights. Most nights, they'd just be on opposite sides of the bed. The comfort of someone being there for her was enough to get her through everything.

On this particular night, Glinda felt like writing a letter to her father.

_Popsicle,_

_I wish you would respond to me. I am writing to let you know I received the money and I thank you for it. However, I would like a response this time. I miss you and momsie so much. How is she? How are you? Do you two miss me at all? Am I still worth something in your eyes? Do I disgust you? Do I disappoint you? Despite everything that has happened, I still love you both and I long to go home. I miss you so much and I wish you'd come get me._

_Love your daughter,_

_Glinda_

She folded up the letter and put it in an envelope. Just as she did that and looked out the window, she could have sworn she saw someone flying. She went out onto the balcony quietly, holding her robe tightly against herself to help keep herself warm in the cool night air. When she looked up, she definitely saw someone riding on-a broom? Her blue eyes shined with joy when she knew it had to be Elphaba.

As quietly as she could, she climbed down the fire escape off of the old balcony that Dr. Dillamond wrote multiple times that it wasn't safe. In her slippers and pajamas, she ran as fast as she could through the city as she followed the woman on the broom. In the distance, she saw that Elphaba landed. She pushed herself to run faster. "Elphie!" she called into the night when she actually saw the woman walking quickly through the city herself.

Glinda continued to run as fast as she could and finally caught up with the dark figure. "Elphie, it's me!" she beamed and put a hand on her shoulder. Elphaba shook it off violently.

"What do you think you're doing, approaching the Wicked Witch of the West like this, my pretty? Do you have any idea what I could do to you?"

"Elphie, it's me, Glinda," the blonde's smile faltered. "You wouldn't hurt me."

"Stop it, stop it! Glinda's dead! Stop it!" Elphaba hissed and Glinda realized that the green woman couldn't comprehend that she was indeed alive.

"It's okay, Elphie. I'm very much alive, see? I'm okay!"

"Stop speaking, you little idiot!"

"Fae, we have to go!" a voice urged, and Glinda immediately recognized it as Fiyero. How could Elphaba do this to her? Weren't they supposed to be best friends? Hadn't Elphaba promised her in the Emerald City that they'd be together someday?

Suddenly, the Gale Force approached them, and Elphaba was at least smart enough to hop onto her broom, cackling loudly, before flying off towards the west after grabbing Fiyero who clung to her on the broom. Glinda, however, wasn't so fortunate.

"You are under arrest for being affiliated with the Wicked Witch of the West," the captain stated.

"No!" she cried. "No, please, not again!"

"Let Glinda go!" She looked over towards the source of the voice and wasn't sure if she should be thrilled that Dr. Dillamond finally spoke, or horrified because she probably just ruined his entire life. Jabari was actually there with the Goat, too, who looked ready to help her.

Everything happened so quickly- the two Animals approached the guards to speak with them, but there had been a gunshot. Glinda slowly opened her eyes and saw Dr. Dillamond on the ground with a bullet wound, blood pouring out from it. Jabari sat helplessly beside him. When she saw another Gale Force member raise his gun at the Chimp, Glinda yelled out, "No!" She found the strength to push her hand forward and chanted words she hadn't even realized she memorized. A bubble formed around the Animals.

The soldier shot at the bubble. Nothing happened. "Whatever," the captain said. "We want her, not them. Leave 'em. Let's bring her back to Southstairs where she belongs. Madame Morrible wants her back tonight." Instead of being afraid, Glinda let anger take over. She would never go back to Southstairs if she had anything to do with it. The thing was though, if she didn't go with them, she'd be labeled an enemy of Oz just like Elphaba. But if she went with them, it would be much worse. The blonde decided she needed to develop a thicker skin; she decided she needed to forget about ever living a normal life. _Elphie called herself the Wicked Witch of the West, accepting the title the Wizard and Morrible gave her She hurt me tonight. Elphie hurt me. Morrible hurt me. My parents hurt me. Fiyero hurt me. Everyone just hurts me. Elphie..why? But I will show them what wicked truly is. Especially Morrible. She thinks Elphie's a threat to her precious Oz, but that green witch wouldn't hurt anyone. But I would; I have._ With that thought, she let a malicious grin cross her features before a bubble formed around her.

Glinda floated up into the air, sending out horrible illusions. She wasn't afraid of them, like when she read the book. The pictures in the book scared her, but for some strange reason, the images she was producing weren't frightening her in the very least. In fact, they were empowering.

Blood poured from the eyes of the screaming faces that flew above the Gale Force. The soldiers were covering their heads to shield themselves from the blood they felt raining on them. However, it wasn't really there. Glinda realized for the first time that tricking people with these illusions made them actually feel it. "What the body thinks is there," she whispered a line from the book, "it feels. It will continue to feel as it believes. Even if you know it isn't there, if your eyes believe it enough, your brain can no longer distinguish illusion from reality; even if your conscious tells you not to believe it. But I don't feel it because, well, I don't really know. But I don't and that's all that matters; I cannot feel illusions, but they can and they will."

The horrific visions intensified. When a soldier tried to shoot at her, Glinda snapped her fingers, using her magic to kill him. She had killed before, so why not kill again? Southstairs, she decided, was no different from this. "I will show you all what wicked truly is," Glinda declared. "The Wicked Witch of the North will be the most feared person in all of Oz! If you cross my path, you will regret it. Spread the word."

The soldiers looked up at her with fear in their eyes; she loved it. But it wasn't enough. Glinda wanted revenge.


	7. Chapter 7

Madame Morrible was getting ready to go back to sleep. Apparently, the Gale Force claimed they had been afraid of the little blonde girl who was barely five feet. They had claimed she created monsters and made blood rain from the sky. The old woman scoffed and had given them a firm talking to. Also, one of the soldiers had died that night, and Morrible wondered why in Oz they thought Glinda was the one who killed him. That girl couldn't kill a fly! Or so Morrible thought.

She went into her large bed and went to go back to sleep for a few more hours. However, right as she was about to drift off, she heard sniffling from the corner of her room. Annoyed, Morrible lit a candle and carried it over to the annoying source.

In the corner of her room, a small blonde was curled up in what looked to be rags for clothes, and she was shaking with tears. She was about to strike the easy target before a small voice said, "What did you do to me?"

"Stupid girl, you are going to Southstairs, you hear me?" the angry woman replied.

"I'm so hungry and cold…" the girl cried with her face buried in her knees. "What did you do to me?" she repeated. Glinda held out a very thin arm-bone thin. The very image made Morrible shudder. Was the girl really that hungry?

"I'm so hungry my stomach hurts," Glinda sniffed. "Why would you do this to me?"

Glinda was sitting with her head faced down, her legs straight in front of her now as she sat. The rags rode up and Morrible could see the cuts and bruises on the girl's thighs. She took in a sharp breath at the terrible sight. Did this really happen to Glinda? Was Southstairs that terrible? "Why would you let them touch me, Madame? I don't understand."

Speechless, she watched the battered, bruised, and starved body shake with sobs. "Can I please go home now? Is it over?" Somehow, Morrible felt some form of sympathy for her. Glinda really hadn't done anything to deserve such punishment. The older woman reached her hand out and touched a bony shoulder. Suddenly and all too quickly before Morrible could react, the blonde snapped her head up to look at her. Instead of watery blue eyes, she stared into black orbs that leaked blood. She stared into those soulless black eyes and saw all of the people, including Animals, be beaten and starved in Southstairs. She watched the cruelty unfold and she actually felt as if she could smell all of the blood she saw. Madame Morrible was pushed across the room and fell onto her rear. Glinda stood over her.

"Leave me alone," she said over the screams of agony. "Let me be. If you leave me alone, if the Gale Force leaves me alone, you won't have to deal with me." Her voice was tripled and sounded demonic as she spoke. Her sharp teeth pierced her own gums as she spoke, drawing blood. "If something happens to me and I trace it back to you, I'll come back."

Glinda faded, along with the horrid screams and visions. Morrible couldn't sleep for days until she passed out from exhaustion.

Her father received a different kind of revenge; it wasn't scary like Morrible's, but it was awful just the same. For one week, Glinda made a seven year old version of herself and made her do things such as drawing, running, and laughing. For any parent, it would be wonderful to see his or her daughter as a little girl again. However, every time her father went to touch the illusion, she made sure that he couldn't. Furthermore, the little girl never acknowledged his existence. When she'd make the girl fall down, she'd cry and cry, asking for her father, but even though he'd be right by her side, she would never be there.

The last night was the worst image her father could have imagined. He knew she was an illusion, but it didn't change his feelings. The illusion had aged for that night; a fifteen year old Glinda was walking in the gardens, picking flowers happily, late at night. He smiled at the sight and he remembered when his real daughter would do this when she couldn't sleep. Suddenly, a man grabbed her. He ran outside as fast as he could, and listened to her agonizing screams. By the time he got there, the man was gone, and Glinda was left on the ground shivering. "Why are you letting this happen to me, Popsicle?" she cried before she disappeared for good.

Her mother was a different story. Her revenge on her mother was somewhat horrifying, but only lasted about five minutes a day for a week. She just had her illusion stare at her from around every corner. Whenever her mother approached her and went to ask for forgiveness, the illusion would remind her of the poor choices she made, calling her a terrible mother whom she inherited her nonexistent heart from. This, she knew, affected her mother greatly because she knew she had never been the best mother; she cared more about looks and Oz's social hierarchy.

Throughout her time getting revenge, she had sent numerous illusions throughout cities and towns, making people fear her. She truly was known as the Wicked Witch of the North and she laughed when the time came that people didn't care about the Wicked Witch of the West anymore. She wasn't entirely sure if this bothered the green woman, but she figured it must do something to her.

However, just in case that didn't bother Elphaba enough, Glinda made sure to scare the Wizard so horribly by torturing him with images that he finally got rid of the Animal bans around Oz for good. If he didn't, the images would continue to haunt him. But if he did free the Animals along with the innocents in Southstairs, he wouldn't see anything like those ever again.

Glinda knew this would hurt Elphaba because she knew deep down; she wanted to get rid of the Animal bans which she had been working on for the cause for years. However, Glinda just worked on it for about a week.

That had been the end to the hunt for the Wicked Witch of the West. She had no reason to cause trouble anymore, so Glinda knew her ex-roommate wouldn't fly around on her broom anymore or cause trouble with the Resistance, which no longer existed.

The Wicked Witch of the North indirectly ruled Oz through the Wizard and Morrible whom she plagued with nightmares and visions if they didn't do what she said.

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Thanks for the reviews! I appreciate them! This was just more of a filler chapter, but the next one will be more interesting.


	8. Chapter 8

Nobody knew that Nessarose Thropp enjoyed going outside at two in the morning. Munchkinland never had any nightlife after eight at the latest. Unlike the cities, all of Munchkinland was generally quiet, including Center Munch where the largest city was located. The brunette loved this because it meant she could go outside and go for a-what would she call it? A wheel? Most definitely not a stroll or a walk. She enjoyed going in between the farmland where nobody was for miles.

She never told Boq of her nightly- she still wasn't sure what to call it. She would wheel herself and push herself over the bumps in the grass; it was very difficult to do, but it helped her release the pent up frustration she had concerning the man she loved who refused to love her back, and the abandonment of her sister.

When Nessa reached the middle of the field that had been unclaimed by any family (she wondered why because it was quite a nice plot of land), she locked her chair into place and looked up at the moon and the stars. It was a full moon that night. She pressed her lips together before the tears fell down her cheeks. She'd never let Boq see her cry over this. And she didn't want to admit to him that she was waiting for Elphaba to come save her from the torment and agony she felt from her abandonment. She'd give anything to have her sister back; she didn't even want her back to care for her. In fact, Nessa had no problem taking care of herself.

Nessarose was very much alone, and she refused to admit it to anyone but herself.

She heard footsteps in the distance, and she quickly dried her tears. She unlocked her wheelchair and turned towards the direction of the noise. She saw a figure unknowingly approaching her, the moonlight letting Nessa see the silhouette. It was most definitely a female, so any fear she had vanished. She wanted to ignore it and go on with her, well, whatever it was, but when she saw the woman fall to her knees, she felt somewhat sorry for her, maybe compassion?

But why should Nessarose feel any sort of sympathy for someone she didn't know when she was living a horrible lie herself? She decided to go over to her anyway to make sure she didn't collapse from getting hurt. After all, what if the girl did notice her and tried to get to the Governess for help? Nessarose was already known as the Wicked Witch of the East due to her role in politics, so one kind deed could erase that horrid nickname people called her behind her back. Or maybe it would just make one less person who thought she was a soulless witch.

She approached the woman and gasped when she saw who was on the ground crying. Her blonde curls were much longer than she remembered. "Glinda?" Nessa said quietly, but loud enough to be heard. Glinda looked up quickly through her tears and held up her hand, most likely ready to use magic. "It's Nessarose," she said and swallowed hard. She knew everything about how Glinda was the Wicked Witch of the North: everyone knew of the terrible illusions she sent and the deaths she caused.

"Nessa?" Glinda questioned and lowered her hand slightly.

"I won't hurt you," she said, feeling as if it was the right thing to say.

"How do I know?" Glinda asked. "Everyone else has one way or another." She was preparing to make those illusions to scare her off. She had projected herself onto Nessarose with enough force to latch onto her and pull her out of her wheelchair. Glinda had one hand up ready to use her magic again.

"Would you really do that to the person who paid your Southstairs bail?" She wasn't sure if she should have revealed that information, but it slipped out without her thinking. She looked up into the cold blue eyes that softened slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"Once my father passed away, I took over as Governess of Munchkinland, as you know. When he died, I went through some files. I found the Southstairs one. Every ruler gets a list of the prisoners that were taken into Southstairs, by the way. Everyone usually ignores it," Nessa explained.

"But you didn't," Glinda whispered, the grip she had on Nessa's right wrist loosened just a tiny bit.

"I didn't," Nessa confirmed. "I scanned the names and saw yours. I knew you never did anything wrong; no offense, but one look at you before all of this screamed innocent; it was Elphaba who defied the Wizard. I honestly couldn't see you having the guts to do something like that. I saw the price they put beside your name and paid it," she finished.

"And you aren't making this up?" Glinda questioned her skeptically.

"Please, you're the Wicked Witch of the North now, aren't you? I would be an idiot to lie to you unless I had a death wish," Nessa replied. Glinda put her hand down and fell down on top of the Governess. She released Nessa's wrist and used that hand to clutch the fabric of her dress. "Glinda?" she asked, shocked.

"Thank you," Glinda wept, "Thank you for saving me when nobody else would." Nessa subconsciously rubbed the blonde girl's back. It was more than obvious she was broken, even more than Nessarose herself.

"What can I do?" Nessarose finally said after what seemed like twenty minutes. She felt part of the weight being lifted off her body. The blonde looked down at her with large, watery eyes.

"Not hate me," she whispered.

"I could never," Nessarose said, truly meaning the words that came out of her mouth. Why had she felt such a connection with her? Was it because Elphaba had abandoned her, too?

"I should do something for you," she sniffed and rolled off of her. Nessa sat up.

"What?"

"You answered me when I was calling for help. Well, not really," she let out a sad, small giggle. "But, you saved me. I'd still be down there if it wasn't for you. So now, it's my turn to answer what you want most."

"I don't think you could do that," Nessarose sighed. "I don't think you could make Boq love me."

"No, I can't," Glinda admitted. "But that's not what you want most."

"Enlighten me," Nessa rolled her eyes; maybe Glinda hadn't really changed all that much.

"You want to walk by yourself," she responded. And Nessa had to take that back; that blonde girl was smart. "And that is something I can do," she smirked before tossing Nessa's shoes off of her feet and tugging at her stockings.

"Glinda!" Nessa hissed.

"Oh, stop it. It's just some leg," she said and pulled the dress up so that it exposed her lower half. "Stop it," she said when Nessa went to cover herself back up. "I can't have the fabric in my way. You still have your underwear on. Oz, I'm glad I'm not that modest anymore." The brunette closed her eyes as she felt Glinda's hands moving up and down her legs. She heard Glinda's quiet chanting. Her legs began to twitch; her eyes shot open when she processed what had just happened. Her legs were twitching. "And it's done! You should be able to walk! But be careful, though. You're not used to it."

"What?" Nessa asked in disbelief. She moved her legs from side to side and was in complete shock. The blonde stood up and smiled, holding her hands out. Nessa looked at them skeptically still.

"It helps to be friends with the most powerful girl in Oz, huh? Give me your hands. I won't hurt you. You're the one who saved me," Glinda assured her. Nessa nodded slowly and took her hands, letting the thin woman pull her up to her feet. Glinda held her steady until the brunette found her balance. The blonde stood a few feet away from her. With disbelief and joy, Nessa took her first few steps. After practicing for a while, they stopped and stood, looking out towards the moon and the stars.

"What were you doing in Munchkinland, Glinda?" Nessarose asked her.

"Honestly?" the blonde took in a sharp breath. "I was…I was on my way to plague you with my illusions."

"Why?" she whispered.

"My goal was to take your army," Glinda said. "I figured since Elphaba had the stupid Vinkun soldiers in her castle, along with those flying monkeys, why not command my own army? But with your army, I was going to get the Gale Force on my side, too. And then I would somehow take the throne. I haven't completely worked out the details-"

"Slow down," Nessarose said, keeping her eyes trained on the moon in front of her. "You want to take over Oz?"

"It's a goal," Glinda shrugged. "But I have to figure out how to do it without an army."

"Glinda, you don't want Oz or the responsibilities of ruling an entire country. It isn't worth it," she replied, keeping herself calm; after all, Glinda was still the Wicked Witch of the North and proved herself to be ruthless. Just imagine if she hadn't found her that night-Glinda would have stolen her army, taken Munchkinland (most likely), take over the Gale Force, and eventually all of Oz! That was ridiculous, but at the same time, realistic. Glinda had managed to keep the Gale Force from pursuing her; they were too afraid.

"And why not?" the question she asked was rhetorical, but Nessa went to answer it anyway.

"I rule Munchkinland," she began. "It's not as fun as it seems-it's mostly boring with all the paperwork and whatnot."

"I guess," Glinda shrugged.

"Just don't do it," Nessa said to her. "You'll regret it. Focus on something else."

"It's stupid," Glinda said. "I mainly wanted to do all of this to annoy Elphaba and maybe attack her army," she giggled.

The brunette wasn't entirely sure why, but she put an arm around Glinda's waist and pulled her close.

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Thanks again for the reviews! They put a smile on my face :)


	9. Chapter 9

Nessa laid in bed early in the morning with her arm around Glinda who was reading a book aloud. For some reason when the blonde read, it calmed her; while she read, Nessarose could almost imagine Glinda as anything but a wicked witch. She allowed Glinda to have these quiet mornings with her every Sunday. It was a nice little ritual they had started about a month and a half ago. Every Saturday night, they'd meet outside in the field where they found each other that night Nessa was able to walk. Glinda would spend the night and sleep beside Nessarose in her bed.

The whole reading in bed was therapeutic, and it was even relaxing for Nessa, too. With the new friendship she found, she wasn't as angry and didn't find a need to make new laws to strip away the Munchkins' rights. She even repealed some, even the ones that had kept Boq from leaving. However, he didn't leave, and Nessa was confused. He continued to serve her and call her 'Madame'.

Glinda closed the book after reading two chapters and put it on the nightstand. "I never want to leave bed," she sighed as she snuggled into the taller girl. Usually by this hour, they were up and about the mansion. Nessa would be working on some political matters while Glinda went into the library and read until the brunette was done for the day. After dinner, Glinda would head back to wherever it was she lived.

Nessarose never asked where Glinda lived; she assumed it was somewhere in the north, but it wasn't something the blonde ever brought up. "Let's just relax today," Nessa decided. "I'll cancel my meetings and we'll just stay here forever." She kissed the top of Glinda's head.

"Really?" Glinda said happily and giggled when Nessa nodded. Those blue eyes that stared up at Nessa looked innocent, but she knew about the horrible things Glinda had done, and she didn't want to know what horrors she had seen.

"I need a break every now and then. Maybe I shouldn't work on Sundays. Six days is enough."

"I agree," Glinda smiled and rested her head on Nessa's chest. She rubbed the smaller girl's back as she began to let her mind wander. She wondered why Morrible had been so adamant about not letting her take Glinda in after she bailed her out from Southstairs. Her choice was to bail her out and let her deal with the Emerald City streets, or let her live the rest of her life in Southstairs without doing a thing. She had tried negotiating, but the threats had been real at the time, and she couldn't risk everything. However, she was beginning to think she should have just risked it all and ran away with her somewhere. But that would have been way too difficult considering she had been in a chair at the time.

"I miss her so much," Glinda said, breaking her thoughts. She knew she was talking about Elphaba again. Some days, Glinda would talk about Elphaba as if she was the worse person in all of Oz, and then other days, she'd talk about how amazing she was along with how much she needed her.

"I do, too," Nessa replied. It was true; she had hated her for abandoning her, but she realized that she truly missed her older sister. Maybe now that she could walk, would Elphaba come back?

"Do you think she still loves me?"

"I-I don't know," Nessarose answered truthfully. "Does she still remember me?"

"I would like to think so," Glinda reached for Nessa's free hand and held it.

"Glinda, I don't know where you're staying, but I'd really like you to stay here with me in Munchkinland. I feel more relaxed when you're around," she admitted.

"I'd love that," Glinda said and pushed herself up to Nessa's level and kissed her. "Although, it's going to be kind of weird to be the Wicked Witch of the North now," she giggled. Nessa smiled and pulled her in for a longer kiss.

There were a lot of things Glinda never told Nessarose, and one of them was the fact that she had been living outside in some forest up north. She honestly didn't mind sleeping outside in the forest; she felt safe up in those trees where people most likely couldn't find her, nor could they get to her. She never really slept much, except the nights she spent sleeping in Nessa's bed.

Glinda felt ashamed that she still couldn't sleep by herself. If she did, she'd wake up every two hours and search for any kind of danger. Furthermore, she was haunted by nightmares that never seemed to go away. If she did wake up from one, she'd feel better when Nessarose was sleeping soundly beside her. She smiled to herself when she thought about the younger Thropp sister.

The blonde was walking through the gardens while Nessa was cooped up inside at one of those boring political meetings. A while back, she had Glinda sit in on one and laughed after the three long hours; she had been so bored out of her mind. _If you take over Oz or any place,_ she had said, _just think of all the boring meetings in your future_. That had been a major turn off.

"Miss Glinda?" It was Boq, and she wondered what he was doing in the rose gardens. "May I walk with you?" After everything she had done, the Munchkin was still enamored by her. The only reason why he stayed (Nessa had given back the Munchkin's rights) was because Glinda was still there. She wondered how he could still be this obsessed with her after knowing that she had killed and tortured people with visions.

"Sure," she smiled, and she knew she still had that cute look she always had. But the fact of the matter was, she was thinner and paler and she wondered if that made her look more childlike (considering she was so short) or if it made her look like a skeleton. It depended on the day, and currently, she felt like a skeleton. She only wore corsets because it didn't make her look as skinny and gave her the figure she once had. "What brings you to the gardens?"

"I like to walk here once in a while, you know, clear my mind," he replied. Despite the happiness he showed, she could sense he was a bit distraught about something.

"Is something bothering you?" she questioned him. He was silent for a good two minutes before taking in a deep breath and releasing it.

"The other day in the library, I was looking for a book to read. I have a lot of free time now considering Madame walks now, and she doesn't really need me for anything," he rambled. "Anyway, I saw you sitting on a table and Madame stood between your legs and you two, well…you were…" he trailed.

"Making out?" Glinda finished his sentence for him. "We do that a lot."

"I don't understand," Boq said calmly despite the tears shining in his eyes.

"It's complicated," she said to him.

"Are you two…in a relationship? Do you love her?"

"Well," Glinda started as they continued walking at a slow pace. "We aren't in a traditional relationship. And I love her, but I'm not in love with her, and she isn't in love with me, and I think she loves me. It's complicated," she repeated.

"I want to understand," Boq replied genuinely.

"It's more like we're filling a void of sorts. Nessa is very much in love with you, but you won't accept it. And I'm in love with Elphaba, but she's off Oz knows where and probably isn't too fond of me," Glinda explained.

"So this is just a fling between you two? And you love a woman?"

"Biq," she said and stopped walking. She took his hands in her own. "Boq," she corrected. "Honestly, things between you and I would never work out."

"Because you never were romantically interested in men," he concluded. "Well that's a relief!"

"A relief?" she arched her eyebrow.

"I always thought there was something wrong with me! Not that there's anything wrong with you, but I really thought I was just…I don't know, I thought something was wrong."

Glinda smiled and released his hands. She smoothed out her dark purple dress. "Maybe you can love Nessa like I never could because she sure can't love me like the way she loves you. Biq-Boq, you have to understand that Elphaba abandoned her, then her father died, and then she was put into power at a young age. I know deep down you love her or else you still wouldn't be here."

Some days, Glinda could be hostile. But on others, Nessa noticed as she watched the interaction from her office window, she could be the sweetest thing. Nessarose loved her with all her being and sometimes she wished she could fall in love with her. However, her love for the Munchkin was just too strong to ignore. She hoped that one day, she'd find true love.

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Thanks for reading! The next chapter will have a bit more action in it :)


	10. Chapter 10

Nessarose finished reading a letter from Dr. Dillamond. Glinda had managed to get his job back teaching at Shiz as well as continuing his research and writing books on Ozian History. The blonde hadn't wanted to live with him due to the fact she had been on the run as well as psychologically torturing Madame Morrible and the Wizard, and occasionally her parents. Although Glinda still continued to bother Morrible and the Wizard if they didn't keep their word on a few things, she never sent anything to her parents. Glinda had laughed at the fact that her parents had no idea where she was. _I don't need them, anyway. I'm better than them because I'd never abandon anyone like they did to me. I never thought that my parents' love would be conditional_. The words were heartbreaking to Nessa, and she had comforted Glinda when she broke down afterwards.

Nessarose knew the blonde was deteriorating mentally. She couldn't control water like she once could, and her levitating skills were going away. The illusions she made were becoming more demented and twisted, or so she heard from the Wizard when she had meetings with him every two to three months.

Dr. Dillamond's note had a request about taking Glinda with him on vacation to Ev for about a month. He mentioned that it might do her some good to get out of Oz, but of course, he wanted Nessa's professional opinion on the matter. As far as she knew, Dr. Dillamond was the only one who knew she had a degree in psychology as well as political science. She had hid the fact from her father. She had become interested in the mind of people when she found out Elphaba had defied the Wizard and abandoned everyone who cared about her. Nessa often wondered why people were able to just get up and leave everything that mattered.

Nessarose immediately threw the letter in the fireplace. If Glinda knew how she and Dr. Dillamond communicated in regards to her mental health, the blonde would probably leave and do things she didn't think Glinda capable of doing.

It was easier and better, Nessa had decided, not to tell her.

She was told to give this second letter he enclosed in a smaller envelope to Glinda if she agreed. She left her chambers and happily walked downstairs to eat lunch with Glinda who was waiting for her. "You're late," Glinda pouted jokingly.

"I am terribly sorry, princess. I was reading some boring old letters and lost track of time," Nessa said and put her hands on her shoulders, kissing the top of her head. She sat down across the table from her.

"I guess I can forgive you," Glinda laughed. Moments like these were the ones Nessa cherished. The ones where she found Glinda on the bathroom floor passed out or hurt were the ones that she feared.

"Well, I would hope so; how would I live with myself?" she joked. "Oh, and you got a letter today."

"From Dr. Dillamond?" she questioned excitedly as she took the piece of mail. It was silent for a moment as she read it, but her blue eyes lit up at the mention of the words vacation. "Dr. Dillamond invited me to go to Ev with him!" she exclaimed.

"Really?" Nessa asked, faking the shock, but not the happiness.

"I leave in about a week. Oh, you don't mind if I go, do you? I can ask him if you can come!"

Nessa chuckled. "No, no, you go and have fun. You haven't seen him in a while. I'll manage without you for a month. But I'll miss you," she said genuinely.

"I'll miss you, too. I'll be sure to get you something very nice, I promise! Ev has amazifying jewelry." Glinda got up from her seat and began to run from the room.

"I thought you wanted lunch!" Nessa shouted after her.

"Not hungry anymore!" she yelled back. "Oz, Nessa, I have to respond right away!"

"At least eat as you write. You skipped breakfast again, and dinner last night."

Glinda had grabbed a pen and paper. She sat back down at the lunch table and ate as she hastily responded to a man who, Nessa assumed, became like a father figure. As she wrote back, Glinda stopped when she noticed the bandages on her wrist. Frowning, she stopped writing and held her left wrist in her right hand, examining it closely. "Nessa," she scrunched her nose in confusion. "Why do I have bandages?" This was becoming routine lately. Every time she saw Glinda inspecting her wrist, she'd want to cry because the blonde couldn't remember the previous night's events. It always seemed to happen late at night at around two in the morning about two or three times per week. The frequencies of these incidents increased as time went on.

"You cut yourself again, remember?" Usually when she said this, Glinda would get brief flashbacks.

"Oh," the blonde looked down, embarrassed. "That's right. I'm sorry…I…don't mean to do it," she bit her bottom lip lightly.

"I know you didn't," Nessa said soothingly. "I think it would be best if you saw a psychologist."

"No, they'll put me away; I know I'm crazy. But I will not be put away again!" the blonde cried. "I won't, I won't," she repeated, shaking her head.

"Glinda, it's all right," Nessarose said softly as she reached for Glinda's delicate, bony hands. She held them gently so as not to make the other woman feel constrained. "You don't have to see a psychologist. Just promise me you'll keep talking to me." Glinda nodded slowly as the tears fell from her eyes. Nessa knew she was easing into somewhat of a session with her and waited patiently for Glinda to open up. Usually, she'd talk about anything but what she was feeling. However, today Glinda seemed to be making some progress by acknowledging that she had self-harmed right away. Nessa could only hope.

"Why do you put up with me, Nessa?"

"I don't put up with you," the brunette said. "You're my friend, Glinda; you've become my best friend."

"And you're my best friend," Glinda said. "There are a lot of things that happened to me. There are reasons why I am the way I am, but Nessa, I just can't bring myself to say them out loud. I can barely think about them without nightmares or just…doing these things to myself in the bathroom," she explained, holding out her wrist.

"Is that why you hurt yourself? Because of those painful memories?" Nessa questioned her.

Glinda nodded. "They were awful. I can't begin to…oh, Lurline," Glinda cried. Nessa had gone over to her side and pulled a chair up beside her. She wasn't sure when, but the smaller woman was on her lap and crying into her chest. The governess rubbed Glinda's back in soothing circles. She let her own tears fall as she was unable to keep them back this time. She couldn't help but feel her heart hurting for Glinda, but, at the same time, she was so proud of her for finally acknowledging why she was hurting herself.

"I know you can't talk about it yet, but maybe you can start to try and write things down," Nessa explained. "If I got you a journal with a lock on it, would you be willing to let out all of the pent up emotions?"

"I think I'm ready to do that," Glinda said.

"I'm so proud of you," Nessarose kissed the top of her head. "Now, do you know what you're going to bring to Ev?" Glinda looked up at her and nodded enthusiastically, a smile on her pretty face.

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Sorry for taking forever to upload. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

Nessarose was in her unusually quiet office at nine in the morning on a Sunday. She never thought she'd miss just lying in bed beside Glinda. But she was happy her friend was enjoying her time in Ev. The letter she had received from Dr. Dillamond proved the blonde was genuinely happy and there weren't any recent scars. He explained how Glinda took an hour a day to write in her new journal. She wouldn't share the information with him, but he hadn't asked. Nessa figured once Glinda was ready to talk, she would.

There was a knock on her window, and Nessa looked over and saw the Crow she had hired to search Oz for Elphaba. She opened the window, hoping for good news. When the Crow smiled, Nessa knew she had found her. After all, Ral was one of the best detectives out there. "She was in the west," Ral said immediately.

"Where, exactly?" Nessa asked him, anxious as to find the whereabouts of Elphaba.

"Kiamo Ko in the Vinkus," Ral reported.

"Thank you so much for finding her," Nessa beamed as the black Bird flew into the room. "Go on down to my secretary and she'll make the arrangements for your payment."

"You're welcome. And thank you. Nobody has ever paid me so handsomely before," Ral said before he flew out of the room.

Nessa abandoned her work and ran through the mansion into her bedroom. She opened her closet and dragged a suitcase out she had prepared for when Ral found Elphaba. When she was in her wheelchair, traveling wasn't fun and very tiresome for both herself and whoever was the one lifting her from chair to carriage or train. She was enjoying her newfound freedom and planned to travel alone.

The governess carried her suitcase down the large staircase, wanting to leave immediately. If she left as soon as possible, the faster she could get back to Munchkinland to make sure she was back for Glinda's arrival. "Madame, what are you doing?" Boq asked her when she reached the bottom of the stairs. "Actually, I should ask where you are going?"

"Just a quick trip," Nessa replied hastily as she continued on her way. She heard Boq following her.

"Just a quick trip where, may I be so bold to ask?"

"The Vinkus. Nothing exciting, really," Nessarose had made it to the simple wagon instead of the luxurious carriage she usually used and put her suitcase inside. She double checked her purse and was satisfied with the amount of money in it. "Asper, a horse for the wagon, please," she said to one of the butlers. "Tell them to get a strong one. I'm going on a long trip."

"Yes, Madame," the butler bowed and made his way towards the stables.

"Madame, why are you going to the Vinkus?" Nessa grimaced at how proper Boq always spoke around her; it was somewhat infuriating. And, she still wondered, why in Oz he was still under her employment. They had gotten in an argument a few nights ago. He had called her ungrateful, and she had called him desperate. She told him to leave the mansion for good; Boq had stormed out of the room, but was there the next morning with her tea. She really wondered about him; he claimed to hate her, but he never left. She was beyond confused since he was giving her mixed signals. It didn't matter to her, though, because she didn't need a man to care for her. She was Nessarose Thropp, the Governess of Munchkinland, the Eminent Thropp!

"Why does it matter?" Nessa rolled her eyes.

"Well, then, who's going with you? That matters to me," Boq replied nonchalantly.

"And why is that?"

"Because for some reason, I care for you just a little bit. And it's my job to care about your wellbeing."

"If you must know, I am going alone," Nessarose stated proudly.

"Madame, you cannot go alone."

"Why not? I am perfectly capable."

"Sure," Boq chuckled. "A woman traveling alone, especially in the wilderness of the Vinkus, is not a smart move. Things can happen. Besides, you're an important figure and lead a country. I am pretty sure you'd be a good and easy target. Look, I'll accompany you so that you don't do anything stupid."

"I wouldn't do anything stupid," Nessa grumbled. "If Elphaba can handle herself, so can I. I am her sister, after all."

"You two are complete opposites. The only thing you have in common are some genetics."

"Fine, come along if you want," Nessa said after her horse was hooked up to the wagon. "I'll give you ten minutes to pack. If you aren't here in exactly ten minutes, I'm leaving without you."

"What do you think of this one?" Glinda questioned Dr. Dillamond. She pointed at a bracelet that was made of white gold and had light blue stones all around it. She smiled at its beauty, and she knew this was the one.

"It is beautiful, Glinda," Dr. Dillamond responded.

"I think Nessa will like it. Don't you?" she asked him without her eyes leaving the piece. "Lurline, Ev jewelry is exquisite."

"That it is. Now, is this the one?" Dr. Dillamond questioned. He didn't know that Glinda could spend all day mostly window shopping. She hadn't asked for anything for herself. Her only mission was to find Nessa a gift. He was glad that Nessarose had taken Glinda in while he was at Shiz. He, too, was scarred from his time in Southstairs as well as when they forced him to become an Animal. However, unlike Glinda, he was able to talk about it if he had to whereas she kept quiet.

"Yes it is!" Glinda nodded.

"I forgot to ask," Boq said. The two were sitting on the wagon with Nessa looking at the map occasionally and driving. She looked so determined as to whatever it was she was doing, and he felt himself enjoying her profile more than he should. "Why exactly are you going to the Vinkus?" She didn't turn towards him, but continued to look ahead, putting the map aside.

"I'm going to pay my sister a visit," she replied as if it was nothing. Boq's eyes went wide, being one of the few people who still knew who the Wicked Witch of the West was, as well as believing she was insane. Most people had moved on from the green skinned woman and focused more on the Wicked Witch of the North, if anything. However, a majority of the people shrugged their shoulders at the mention of any of the witches considering Glinda hadn't done anything in a while. But if they were to choose which one was the worst, everyone would say the Wicked Witch of the North while Boq would say the Wicked Witch of the West.

"Are you insane?" he asked her.

"Maybe."

"Why are you doing this?" he questioned, not wanting to fight. After all, he invited himself to go along on her journey across Oz.

"Well, she's my sister. I do miss her, but I am terribly mad at her for everything. But, I'm mainly doing this for Glinda. She loves Elphaba and I just figured it wouldn't hurt to reach out to my sister. I think Glinda needs Elphaba to heal properly," Nessa explained.

"Glinda doesn't need to heal," Boq said. Nessa shook her head at his ignorance, knowing that Boq didn't want to believe how tortured Glinda had been, how many times she was probably raped, how many times she wished for Elphaba to come save her from hell.

"You are so dense," Nessa replied.

"Dr. Dillamond?" Glinda said without taking her eyes off of the sunset. She gripped the rail of the balcony of their hotel room tightly, and she bit her lip nervously.

"Yes?"

"Am I…insane? Did I lose my mind?" Glinda asked the Goat.

"Of course not!" he assured her. "What makes you think that?"

"The way I killed some of the Gale Force; I killed, Dr. Dillamond. And what doesn't seem right is that I don't feel bad about it. I think it's wrong that I feel that way, but I cannot bring myself to feel bad about the lives I ended."

"Glinda, if I may say this, they were going to put you back in that Oz awful place," he said, realizing how he couldn't even bring himself to say Southstairs. He could think the word, but he couldn't say it. "If…if somebody could lock someone down there without feeling guilty, then they deserve to die. Think about all of the people you saved; you saved me from being merely an animal. You saved all of the Animals of Oz from being repressed."

"But I still killed," Glinda replied calmly. "Would Elphie judge me? Would she still love me?" Glinda let tears fall down her cheeks, but her expression was still the same.

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Just another filler chapter. Next chapter will be more exciting, I promise! Thanks for the reviews and reading!


	12. Chapter 12

Nessarose stopped the wagon when she came face to face with Kiamo Ko. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought the place was deserted. She looked at the old stone building and swallowed hard at the thought of approaching Elphaba; would she accept Nessa walking into her home? Or would she chase her away? She hoped her sister would give her a second chance to prove she wasn't here to cause trouble or demand her servitude. Despite being angry at Elphaba, Nessa still missed her sister and realized she had taken her for granted. She had been a rotten sister in the past. But she wanted to change that; she wanted to be the best little sister there was. "Are you sure someone's here?" Boq asked her. "It looks pretty deserted."

"That Crow is the best detective in all of Oz, I'm pretty sure," she replied. "If he says she's here, then she's most definitely here. Now, help me find the door," she said and hopped off the wagon. She unhooked the horse from it and brought it over to a shallow stream. The horse drank, and she figured he wouldn't run away as long as there was water and grass to graze on.

"Hey, Nessa-er-Madame!" Boq yelled to her. "I found the door." Nessa ran as fast as her legs could carry her. The two stood in front of the large castle doors doing nothing and saying nothing. "What do we do?" he asked her.

"Not entirely sure," Nessarose said, tilting her head slightly to the left. "I guess we knock."

"Oh, yes, Madame, that is definitely what we do," Boq said sarcastically. "Because that makes all the sense in the world! It's that-simple?" Nessa had knocked on the door, and it slowly opened. When nobody showed themselves, she slowly pushed Boq in front of her.

"Check it out," she whispered.

"Of course now you aren't so bold," he grumbled. He poked his head into the dark castle and saw absolutely nothing and reported his findings. Reassured, the Governess of Munchkinland pushed the door open and walked into the castle. "Hello?" she yelled. Her voice echoed, and she slightly startled herself and gasped.

"Madame, please, keep it down," Boq whispered.

"How else will she know I'm here?" Nessarose said normally. "Hello? Elphaba? It's me, Nessarose! Your sister! I, um, just dropped by for a visit!" After a moment of complete silence, Boq put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Maybe she isn't here."

"But she has to be!" Nessa yelled at him, shrugging his hand off of her shoulder.

"Shhh," Boq said. "You hear that?" Nessa listened and she heard footsteps.

"Who's there?" a voice questioned threateningly. It was most definitely male, and the duo stepped back slightly.

"I-I was told my sister was here, but I seemed to have mistaken. We will just be leaving now and-" the brunette stuttered.

"Nessarose?" the stranger questioned. "Is that you…and you're walking?"

"He knows my name," Nessa panicked and hid behind Boq. She was thankful he was about her height and not as short as a majority of the Munchkins.

"Relax, it's just me," the stranger said and stepped closer to reveal himself.

"Fiyero? Well, you are most definitely not Elphaba!" Nessa exclaimed, coming from behind her terrible hiding spot. "I came all the way out here to see Fiyero! Oh, this is just great!"

"I'm quite dandy, and how are you, Miss Nessarose?"

"Don't mind her, Fiyero," Boq replied. "Nice to see you." Nessa continued to pace back and forth angrily as the two men continued to speak. "She was looking for Elphaba, but I see the detective she hired failed."

"Oh no, the detective didn't fail. She's here, but she's quite a few floors up."

"Well why didn't you say so?" Nessarose asked annoyed. Fiyero shrugged and mentioned that she was quite like Elphaba when she was angry. The governess narrowed her eyes at him before she forced herself to calm down. She didn't think she was as hotheaded as Elphaba, but apparently Fiyero and Boq thought otherwise. At least, she thought, she didn't run away from her family when things didn't go her way.

"She's up the stairs on the top floor," Fiyero explained.

"Of course she is," Nessa replied, wishing that Elphaba could just be on the first floor for once to make her life easier. "I'd like to go alone, if you don't mind."

"Go on right ahead, but should I tell her you're here first? She's rather…cranky today, to say the least."

"No, I need to see my sister," Nessa said. The two men nodded, understanding her need, and she climbed the stone staircase. Her legs were almost cramping before she made it to the top. Why in Oz would Elphaba want to climb up so many stairs? It must have taken Nessarose a good fifteen minutes to finally get to the top. She hunched over with her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. "How…in…Oz…does…she…do this daily?" Once her breath was finally caught, she knocked on the only door in front of her.

"I told you to stop bothering me!" she heard Elphaba's voice through the door. Nessa swallowed hard and nervously went to speak. Her sister sounded very angry, and she had to admit, she was somewhat afraid of her. But why should she be? Nessarose reminded herself that the green woman behind the door was just her older sister.

"Elphaba, it's me, Nessarose, your sister." After saying the last part, Nessa wanted to slap herself in the face. Of course she was her sister! Lurline, why must she sound so stupid in front of Elphaba who was basically a genius? Why did Nessa feel as if she was a nervous school girl?

"Nessa? No, it can't be."

"It can," Nessa persisted. "Just please open the door." When the door opened, she wanted to cry when she saw her sister's face for the first time in person in years. She let herself smile stupidly before she forced herself into Elphaba's arms for a hug. And it was the first time that she realized how much she measured up to Elphaba height-wise. Luckily (or so she thought), Elphaba was only about two inches taller than her.

Elphaba had returned the hug for a brief moment before she pushed Nessa away, eyeing her, but with awe. "Sweet Oz, you can walk? How? When?"

"I'll explain everything. But please, let's just sit. My legs are killing me from those stairs." Elphaba had always had a soft spot for Nessa, and the brunette could tell considering she led her over to a chair willingly and let her deeper into the attic room. Bookshelves lined the walls and were stuffed with books, there was a desk, and a couple of chairs. They sat down facing each other.

"Please, tell me, how have you been?"

"I've been pretty good. I see you've been well seeing as you're living in a castle and never invited me to come over," Nessa joked, but Elphaba tensed.

"You're walking now," the raven haired woman replied.

"It's quite a long story and a miracle. You don't want to hear it." She didn't want to bring up the fact that Glinda had used her magic and was living under her roof.

"I've got time," Elphaba persisted, her patience dwindling.

"Well, one night I was outside going for my one in the morning roll to a plot of empty land in Munchkinland. And then, I found Glinda and she used her magic and now I can walk," she explained quickly, hoping Elphaba would just go along with it. However, Nessa learned that not everything could go her way, and when it didn't, it was usually very inconvenient for her.

"Glinda's dead," Elphaba replied and stood quickly. "Don't you dare say her name!"

"What? Elphaba, she lives with me in Munchkinland. Surely she's alive," Nessa said, staying seated. She had to be the calm one in this situation.

"That isn't possible. Have you come in here just to torment me? Now, get out! Get out!" Elphaba pointed at the door.

"No, I will not!" Nessarose proclaimed and stood, unable to keep herself calm after being yelled at. "Glinda is very much alive. I'm sure you've seen here- sweet Oz, she's the Wicked Witch of the North! Everyone knows that much!"

"Glinda wasn't wicked! She never was. She's dead and gone. I don't know who you're living with, but it most definitely is not Glinda Upland."

"What makes you say she's dead?" Nessa asked, trying to understand Elphaba's train of thought.

"Because I watched her die! Morrible made me watch her execution through an Ozdamn glass ball! I saw the Gale Force torture her and kill her. She's dead…she's dead…I couldn't save her." Reaching her pale hands out, Nessa grasped Elphaba's green ones and held them. Tears fell from Elphaba's eyes.

"Elphaba, I promise you Glinda isn't dead. I've been taking care of her. She is very much alive."

"How can that be? I saw her…"

"Morrible is the only wicked woman in all of Oz; not me, not Glinda, and certainly not you. Elphaba, Glinda was sent to Southstairs the day you defied the Wizard because she was affiliated with you. Before you blame yourself, please don't. The whole prison system was messed up at the time," Nessa explained. "Well, mostly Morrible and the Wizard."

"It's hard to believe…why should I believe you?"

"Well, I'm your sister. But I think you're just going to have to try and trust me. I know we haven't spoken in ages, but I would never lie to you. And besides, who else would have approached me back during my dictator days?" Nessa smiled when she saw her sister let out a small laugh at her attempt at humor.

"I'm going to believe you for now," Elphaba said and squeezed her hands. "Did they…did they hurt her?"

"Yes," Nessarose answered truthfully.

"How?"

Nessa bit her lip nervously. "You don't want to know."

"I must, Nessa. I care about her deeply."

"How deep?"

"I would go as far as to say I love her."

"They'd beat her and rape her," Nessa whispered. "But that's all she has said. I don't know how bad they hurt her, but I can infer that it was terrible. It was so bad that she can't sleep alone in her own room."

"Sweet Oz," Elphaba whispered and squeezed her eyes shut. "And you've been taking care of her?"

"I never let her go a night without me there," she assured. "Between Dr. Dillamond and me, we've been doing our best. She's deeply scarred, Elphaba. I've been trying to help her mentally as much as I can, but I can't do any more because she can't talk about it. That's why I found you, Elphaba. I found you so that you can heal the abandonment she feels from you. I know you didn't abandon her, but I know that feeling is still there. I can't fix what happened to her in Southstairs, but I can fix this, or at least try."

"Where is she? Did you bring her with you?" Elphaba asked.

"She's in Ev right now on vacation with Dr. Dillamond."

"Why isn't she with her parents?"

"They didn't want a daughter who spent five years in Southstairs. Glinda said it was due to their social status. She lost everyone."

"I'm such an idiot! I should have known Morrible lied to me. I'm such a fool."

"Elphaba, there's no way you could have known. Please, don't blame yourself," Nessa replied, thankful that this was going smoothly.

"You came here for Glinda, but you didn't want to see me for yourself, did you? If Glinda wasn't around, you probably wouldn't have found me," Elphaba pointed out suddenly, and Nessa cringed. The sad part was, it was true. However, that didn't mean that she didn't miss her sister. Nessa stood up straight, releasing Elphaba's hands as she smoothed out her dress. If Elphaba wanted to be a jerk, so could she.

"It's not like you made any kind of effort to see me after your little trip to the Emerald City."

"Nessa, that's not fair, I-"

"You decided to abandon your family and friends to trot off with a bunch of Animals you didn't know. You should have come back, but you didn't. Instead, you're hiding in this stupid castle!" Nessarose threw her arms over her head for emphasis.

"You're just a selfish bitch," Elphaba hissed. "You always have been, and always will be."

"Oh, yes, me the selfish bitch. I heartily agree, Elphaba. In fact, I even took your place as Governess of Munchkinland because you graciously gave it to me! And I'm so selfish that I took in Glinda, who I might add, is emotionally and mentally unstable, and cared for her for over a year and a half, maybe two years by now. I'm so selfish that I came all the way out here on a horse and wagon across Oz to see you! Exactly, Elphaba, you have me exactly right. I am a selfish bitch," Nessa yelled at her, tears falling down her face. Elphaba was speechless as Nessa continued to angrily yell at her, letting out all of her pent up frustration. "I'm such a selfish bitch I sit at the dinner table with Glinda for three hours to make sure she actually eats something. I'm such a selfish bitch that I sing her to sleep or comfort her after her nightmares when she wakes up in the middle of the night screaming 'where's Elphie? Come back to me, my Elphie, come back'."

Elphaba held Nessa tightly as the two sisters cried, both of them apologizing for everything they had done and everything that had been said. They didn't speak as they sat on the attic floor in each other's arms, comforting one another. Nessa closed her eyes and fell asleep against her sister's shoulder.

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Sorry for the delayed uploads! School has me swamped right now (even on my spring break) so I don't have as much time to write as I'd like, but hopefully this longer chapter makes up for it! I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading and reviewing!


	13. Chapter 13

After saying goodbye to Dr. Dillamond, Glinda was greeted by Nessarose waiting for her patiently on a bench at the train station. The blonde rushed over to her quickly, dragging her suitcase with her the entire way. Her smile was filled with happiness, and she was genuinely glad to see Nessa after a month away from her. She ran as fast as she could, and Nessa noticed her and smiled back, standing up. The blue eyed woman dropped her suitcase on the ground as she wrapped her arms around Nessa's slim, but sturdy, frame. "It's good to see you," Nessa said after kissing golden curls.

"I missed you so much!" Glinda confessed. She held onto Nessa a little more than publically appropriate before pulling away.

"Did you have fun on your vacation?" Nessa asked her.

"So much!" Glinda giggled. "It was nice spending some time with Dr. Dillamond. I don't get to see him as much as I'd like," she confessed. She went to pick up her suitcase, but she noticed that Boq had already picked it up for her.

"I insist, Miss Glinda," he smiled.

"Thank you, Boq," she replied, proud of herself for remembering his name.

Upon the arrival back at Nessa's mansion, Glinda ran inside. "I missed the rich life," she joked. She took her suitcase from Boq and dug around in it, being careful not to wrinkle her dresses. She found the brown paper bag she was looking for, and slipped a black rectangular jewelry box from it. "Nessa, I got this for you!" Glinda smiled and stood, handing it to her.

"Oh, you didn't have to get me anything," Nessarose said, blushing as she was handed the gift.

"Technically, I didn't buy it. We both know I have absolutely nothing to my name. But I picked it out especially for you. Open it!" Nessa did as she was told, and couldn't breathe when she slowly picked up the bracelet; it shined beautifully as the sunlight hit it through the window. Tears came to her eyes, and Glinda wished she wouldn't cry because she didn't like it when people cried. Tears came to her own eyes as she watched Nessa cry right there in the foyer. Perhaps she should have waited to give her the bracelet.

"It's beautiful," Nessa said, then looked down at the blonde. "Oh, Glinda, why are you crying now?"

"Because you are," she said as if she was a child.

"Thank you so much," Nessarose pulled her in for a hug. "I love it. Please, put it on for me." Glinda did as she was told and clasped it onto Nessa's wrist. She knew it would look great on her; she still had that eye for fashion even if she couldn't buy things herself. "You got my size spot on," Nessa said, keeping her tears at bay. "Now, who's ready for dinner?"

After dinner, Nessa had some papers to read and whatnot, so Glinda was left alone. She declined Boq's company as she saw he was exhausted from the day's travels and knew he just wanted to go to sleep. Nessa had to reluctantly leave Glinda on her own, and the blonde figured she'd be okay on her own for a few hours before bed. In order to keep herself from going crazy, she decided to write in her journal. She flipped the pages until she got to a blank one, and dated the page, starting it off with the two words each one was started out with: Dear Elphie. She thought about what she should write about; what came to mind were her scars on her inner thighs. She hated them dearly.

_Dear Elphie,_

_I already wrote to you all about my vacation, so I'd rather not bore you to death. Instead, I will write to you about something that I haven't told a soul about; Nessa knows they are there, of course, but she doesn't know the specific reason why I have fifty tiny scars going up each thigh. _

_Everyone says that scars tell stories and you should be proud of them. Whoever decided that this was an okay thing to say never really had a scar. Because you have to think about this: What if those scars told horror stories? What if they told a story that would give people nightmares if they thought about them? I know mine give me nightmares whenever I'm reminded about them._

_They happened because of this: there was a man down in Southstairs that had his way with me-well, there were multiple, but despite the darkness, I know his face. After he'd touch me, he'd put a line in my thigh with a knife. It hurt the first few times, but after a while, you get used to a knife digging into your skin and then you find yourself barely feeling it happen. It was either because I was used to the repetitive feeling, or I was just so numb at one point that I just didn't feel._

_Anyway, he told me that it was so whoever would touch me, they'd know I was his or used up already; he told me that I'd be unlovable. My parents would find out and reject me, which came true. He told me that whoever I loved would find me repulsive and that they'd move on. I immediately thought of you and it hurt. It hurt when you rejected me that one night, the night I was claimed a wicked witch. I wish you would have taken me with you, wherever it is you are, and showed me the love that I so desperately needed from you._

_But you didn't. I don't blame you. And I should just get over this love I have for you and move on; I shouldn't dwell on it. But I simply can't, and my heart aches for you._

_I sound selfish, really. I have Dr. Dillamond, Nessa, and Boq (kind of) to take care of me. It makes me feel selfish sometimes because of the fact that I just can never appreciate what I already have- something I have always done, even before my arrest._

_I still have my good days, and I have my bad ones, but I'm dragging myself through life. _

_I love you, Elphie. I just wish you would find me and hold me, even if I repulse you with my scars._

_Forever yours,_

_Glinda_

She shut the journal just when Nessa walked into the bedroom. She looked exhausted, and the blonde got the bed ready for her as she pulled on her nightclothes. "I'm exhausted," Nessa said, stating the obvious as she climbed into bed.

"I can tell," Glinda replied. "Want me to read to you as you fall asleep?"

"Please do. I missed that," Nessa replied. Glinda grabbed a book from the shelf and got underneath the covers with her. Nessa rested her head against Glinda's stomach. She ran her fingers through smooth brown hair as she held the book with the other, pausing only to turn the page as she read.

What Glinda didn't know was a green woman was looking through her crystal ball and had been watching Glinda since she got home from her vacation. The words she had written hurt Elphaba dearly, and the raven haired woman just kept questioning herself: _What have I done?_

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Thank you so much for the positive feedback from the last chapter! I decided to further procrastinate my schoolwork and work on this, because I figured why not? This chapter isn't very exciting, but I believe the next chapter will be quite the opposite :)


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